If you want them food safe, there’s a special marker (affiliate link) for that, Our Humble A{bow}d has a post on those.

As usual, I use what I have on hand. And that’s Sharpie markers.

So I decided to only decorate the outside of the bowls. Although, how cute would it be to write ‘I Love You Dad’ at the bottom of the bowl for him to find when he finishes his cereal every morning?

I also used bowls that I found easily when I was grocery shopping. I found Corelle bowls, that I thought would work great. You’re supposed to use porcelain bowls. Whoops. Not the same. Read on to find out my dilemma. Next time I’ll order porcelain cereal bowls (affiliate link) instead.

(See my EXCITING UPDATE at the end of the post!)

So anyway, here’s what we did. Pretty simple.

I handed the bowls to the boys along with the ‘special’ Sharpie markers.

After a quick goof that George marked up the counter (at my Mom’s!), I put down a layer of newspaper to protect the surface.

I personally do not need to get motivated. Probably most people on your website don’t need to get motivated. The fact that we are looking for activities for our kids probably demonstrates our motivation. I just need new ideas, that’s all, and I appreciate the ideas you share.

I know this is a really old post, but if it came up on page 1 of Google for me it will for others too, so I’ll share this tip anyway. While researching this project, I read that the marker can be wiped off or smudged if the dish is still warm. The best method is to decorate the dish, place it in the oven, turn on the oven (don’t preheat it! Let the dishes heat up with the oven or they may crack with the sudden temp difference!), and then wait until the oven and dishes are completely cool before removing them. That would probably be why they were fine after a day or two and not right away. :)

So cute, we did this with our church kids last night!.I cleaned the Dollar Tree out of their white coffee mugs and small plates. They had a blast! The black Sharpie sticks best, not sure why…but since they used color too I spayed them with a quick coat of mod podge while they were still warm out of oven.

Veronica they are called Mak-It Plates/Bowls/Trays and they are really awesome. I have many from mommy and me classes over the years. But they usually are only affordable in groups. Which is why this particular project caught my eye. Great idea and worth a few test runs :)

I wonder where I can find some porcelain ones. I really want to let my kids make some. That’s a really neat project if I can find the right bowls. I remember when I was little and my school class drew pictures on a circle paper that was sent in and made into plates. I wonder if someone still does that?

Oh, I was so bummed to read that they wiped off after the oven trick. But great to know that after sitting, they’ve set a bit. If you can put a clear coat of craft varnish on them, without your ink smearing, they’ll be washable! I use a matte varnish. I’m too lazy to run downstairs right now, so I’ll see if I can find a link to the brand, and I’ll shoot it over to you.

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